Voting starts on low pace in Chainda

Voting in Lusaka’s Chainda Township in Munali constituency started on a low pace due to heavy rains that characterized most parts of Lusaka this morning.

A check by ZANIS at three polling centres, Chainda Basic School, Chainda Health Centre and Chainda Catholic Church found only few people waiting to cast their votes.

Of the three polling centers, only Chainda Basic had a sizable number of people in two queues but were displaced by heavy rains which poured for close to one hour and 30 minutes.

Presiding Officer at Chainda Clinic Manyando Musa disclosed that the polling centre opened at exactly 06:00 hours and that about 50 people had cast their votes by 08:10 hours.

At Chainda Basic School and Chainda Catholic Church the stations opened late due to logistical arrangement.

Presiding Officer for Chainda Catholic Polling centre disclosed that the delay was necessitated by the shifting of the centre from the old church building which has since been sold to private individuals to the new church a few kilometers away.

He disclosed that even though there was a delay people were able to locate the new polling centre to cast their votes.

Chainda Catholic polling station has 901 registered voters while the total number of registered voters in Munali Constituency is 108,995.

Out of the 108,995 registered voters in Munali, 59,314 are male, 49,681 are female, 23,927 are between 18-24 years of age and 40,947 are between the ages of 25-35 years while 44,121 voters are above 35 years.

Meanwhile, a senior citizen has appealed to all Zambians to remain peaceful as they wait for the results of the Presidential by election to be announced.

Davies Mwaba, a retired medical doctor of Ibex Hill stated that citizens should exercise their constitutional right to choose their preferred leader and wait for the Electoral Commission of Zambia to announce who will win the polls without engaging in any violent activity.

Dr. Mwaba who cast his vote at Chainda Clinic polling centre disclosed that he woke up early with his wife to ensure that they cast their votes before the centre is filled with people.

He expressed gratitude that he and his wife have voted peacefully and hope that peace continues even after the announcement of the results.

He explained that there can only be one winner in an election saying the 10 candidates who will lose should concede defeat and continue contributing to the democracy of the country.